Suvarna Garge (Editor)

Travelin' Band

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B-side
  
"Who'll Stop the Rain"

Format
  
7" 45 RPM

Label
  
Fantasy

Released
  
January 1970

Length
  
2:08

Genre
  
Rock and roll, roots rock

"Travelin' Band" is a song written by John Fogerty and originally recorded by Creedence Clearwater Revival. It was included on their 1970 album Cosmo's Factory. Backed with "Who'll Stop the Rain", it was one of three double sided singles from that album to reach the top five on the U.S. Pop Singles Chart and the first of two to reach the #2 spot on the American charts, alongside "Lookin' Out My Back Door". "Travelin' Band" was also a hit in the UK, reaching number eight on the UK Singles Chart.

The song was inspired, both musically and for Fogerty's vocal delivery, by 1950s rock n' roll songs, particularly those by Little Richard. In October 1972, the company that held the publishing rights to Richard’s "Good Golly, Miss Molly" felt that "Travelin' Band" bore enough similarities to warrant a plagiarism lawsuit that was later settled out of court. The lyrics of the song describe what life is like for a musician on the road. The opening line "Seven-thirty-seven coming out of the sky" refers to the Boeing 737, then coming into service on short-to-medium range routes.

It has been covered by a few artists, most notably Elton John, who recorded a cover of the song early in his career, and Bruce Springsteen, who has incorporated it into his "Detroit Medley" during live shows on numerous occasions. Jerry Lee Lewis sang the song with Fogerty on the album Last Man Standing.

The song appeared in the Brazilian film O Homem Que Copiava in relation to an over-the-hill rock fan who has a preference for Creedence. It plays during the armored car robbery sequence.

Following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, the song was placed on the list of post-9/11 inappropriate titles distributed by Clear Channel.

On April 18, 2010, Miranda Lambert, Carrie Underwood, Brad Paisley, Charlie Daniels and John Fogerty performed the song as the opening to the 2010 Academy of Country Music Awards.

The full version of "Travelin' Band" is played during the fight scene of the third episode of the television show, The Good Guys.

A cover of "Travelin' Band" by Curtis Stigers and The Forest Rangers is played during a chase scene in season 3 episode 7 of the television show Sons of Anarchy.

The song is available as a playable song for the Rock Band series of music video games as downloadable content.

References

Travelin' Band Wikipedia